Christmas magic fits into 1909 Mt. Tabor home

Once Patty Turner got a look inside the old house on Mount Tabor, she wanted to live there.

And she knew her lifelong collection of Christmas Santas, stockings, trees and quilts would fit right in.

She says the houses where she and her husband, Kevin, raised their three kids were always decorated for Christmas, but the character of this 1909 house -- the mantel in the living room, the built-in buffet in the dining room -- called out for louder holiday cheer.

Turner's holiday rituals begin with finding the perfect tree.

The Turners both work in Boring, which is home to many tree farms. But the Turners don't settle for just any tree; they hunt for the growers who don't shear and sculpt their noble firs as they grow, which creates a tree with branches too close together for the couple's taste. They want the old-fashioned nobles, where daylight can be seen between each row of branches, and ornaments sway freely.

"They are really beautiful trees," she says, looking over her $20 prize decked out in her stately living room.

Standing in front of the large fireplace, its mantel lined with the family stockings -- including two for the dogs -- Turner says she's not entirely sure how her collection of holiday decor started. Christmas when she was a child was always special, but nothing over the top, she says. But her birthday is in November and everyone knows she loves Christmas, so she often receives lots of Christmas-themed birthday gifts.

One year, she received 21 new ornaments.

So, between the presents from loved ones and inheriting family treasures, Turner's gathered quite a trove.

She's a Santa fan, when it comes to having favorites. She laughs at her attraction to them, admitting she gets sad when they are stored after the holidays. They are on a shelf in the basement, where, she says with a giggle, she can peek at them anytime.

"A lot of my things bring back a lot of memories," Turner says. She has no idea where some of them have come from, she continues, but others tell tales of family, friends and places.

The built-in buffet in the dining room becomes the perfect place to set up her winter village, with its snow-dusted houses and shops glowing from within, a horse-drawn carriage working its way through the "snowy" streets, and towering trees.

Turner likes to touch every room with a little Christmas magic and used to put a second live tree in the kitchen. But when her mother died, she inherited her artificial tree, which now adorns the kitchen (where red appliances live year-round).

"When my son was younger, one of his friends came over and then went home and told his mother: 'You should see her house at Christmas. She even has red appliances.'"